In June 2003, the Episcopal Church in New Hampshire came under fire when it became the first to elect an openly gay man, Gene Robinson, as a bishop. Since that flash point, Robinson has been at the center of the contentious battle for LGBT people to receive full acceptance in the faith. Director Macky Alston (whose film, Family Name, won the Freedom of Expression Award at the 1997 Sundance Film Festival) follows Robinson into the breach in the struggle for equality. While resolute in his calling, Robinson grows increasingly critical of the central role that religious institutions have played in fostering homophobia and hatred. He is pointedly not invited to a once-a-decade convocation of bishops and courts controversy by attending. His presence the next year for the Episcopal General Convention underscores the impact of its impending decisions about the church’s stance on the consecration of future gay bishops and the performance of same-sex marriage ceremonies. While Robinson never intended to be the poster boy for gay bishops, Love Free or Die demonstrates that he has become a beacon of hope for millions. His history-making church provides a model for other communities of faith to treat all people with dignity and respect, regardless of their sexuality. (Description courtesy of the Sundance Film Festival.) Winner, U.S. Documentary Special Jury Prize for An Agent of Change, Sundance Film Festival.

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Rana and Adineh, two women of very different backgrounds and social class are accidentally brought together to share a journey. Rana, inexperienced, religious and bound by traditions, is forced to drive a cab in order to survive f inancially. Adineh, wealthy yet rebellious, has escaped from her home. Along the way, Rana begins to understand that her passenger is a transsexual who is planning on having an operation. For Rana, comprehending and accepting such a reality is close to impossible and tantamount to abandoning everything she was raised to believe. (Description courtesy of the Montreal World Film Festival.)

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Wanting to quit prostitution in Manila and start a new life, Sofia, a transgender woman, gets her chance when an old friend asks her to look after her twelve year-old son, Tomas, while she works overseas for a year. Sofia packs her bags and moves to the small town of Talisay where she becomes Donna, taking care of Tomas. As she’s about to settle into this quiet, idyllic life, the past inevitably creeps back up and she discovers that the town’s mayor Tiongson, who is seeking re-election, is a crony of Verano, one of her regular clients back in Manila. Determined to erase any trace of her past, Donna discreetly hatches a plan to remove Tiongson from power and rid the town of Verano’s influence.

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